Being a huge fan of Adrein Brody, I was excited to see Wrecked hit shelves. Having now watched it, I feel strangely lethargic. I’m guesng the fact that half of the film takes place in a crashed car has a lot to do with that.

This one is really tough for me to get into. The movie manages to redefine methodical. Brody portrays our survivor, and while he’s got all the talent required to a carry a film on his shoulders, I’m not certain this film should have been carried by anyone.

The story is fairly bac: Man wakes up in a mangled car plagued by amnea. There’s a body in the back seat, and confuon in the mind of our focal survivor. That alone is a fine setup, but director Michael Greenspan insts on telling the story so meticulously that all suspense slowly drains from the film, and by the 40 minute mark, when Brody’s character manages to escape the car, viewers’ attention has all but dwindled.

No fault lies on Brody: He’s remarkably believable as a confused victim, and his guttural response to the tuation itself is amazingly believable. The major issue is, by the time he frees himself to discover a broken leg and extremely limited mobility, it’s tough to care about the direction the story takes.

I’ll say this: Brody may or may not be a criminal with an additional serious burden to deal with. Perhaps he’s a convict; perhaps he’s an unwitting occupant who’s found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. Regardless of the big reveal (I won’t ruin the one genuinely intriguing revelation), the film mply outlines a harrowing plight of survival. Think about it: you’re stuck in a ravine, in the middle of nowhere, broken in multiple places, and even after you’ve escaped your metal coffin, you’re still forced to battle the elements, all the while crosng your fingers, hoping for the best posble outcome, knowing full well that’s not the likely concluon.

http://youtu.be/hKUtFGg09xk

I found some of the camera work very impresve, and a few auto shots certainly feel a bit claustrophobic. The make-up work is also excellent. Brody’s character looks like a victim for sure: hell, he looks like he found himself on the wrong end of a profesonal fighter’s fists. There’s a great sense of realism in terms of visuals, but it’s just not enough to salvage a film that moves at the speed of 1977 Ford Pinto stuck in first gear.

There are fantastic ideas on display, but pacing puts a nail in the coffin long before the relevant revelations come to light. Wrecked is a spirited effort that should have been approached as a lengthy short rather than a feature length film.

Drink a x pack of Red Bull’s and you may make it through this snoozer.